Spotting board for dry cleaners



Sept. 9, 1952 F. M. PILLEY SPOTTING BOARD Fba DRY CLEANERS Filed June 15, 1950 Ulll'll i0 INVENTOR. Fa /7k M P/V/ey I .47 I

Patented Sept. 9,

,UNITED \STATES PATENT .OFFIE f1 7 1 2,609,678

supreme-Bosnia roe-mrf cuiimres v jaastmrmey, Wichita, Kans. as 1950, sea 1681246:

' This invention relates to cleaning equipment, particularly clothing and other fabric materials. and has to do with a relativelysim-ple, ineipensive and time-saving device usea-bl cleaning establishments for spotting. A cleaningstep commonly employed has an'initial undertaking to remove soiling that requires special attention.

It is the most important object of the present invention to provide a spotting board of an elongated nature mounted upon a suitable pedestal, the board being longitudinally splitpresenting a pair of identical sections that are in turn mounted for swinging movement toward and away from each other.

Another object of this invention is to provide a sectional spotting board wherein the proximal, longitudinal edges of the elongated sections are movable to and from an abutting relationship as the same are swung on their common pedestal.

Other objects includethe way in which the relatively swingable, identical sections are each provided with means for holding the same in a desired position with respect to the support; the way in which a portion of the innermost longitudinal edges of the sections are cut-away to permit the swinging movement and present a limiting stop; and the manner of inclining or arcuately contouring the outermost edges of the sections to adapt the same for the uses intended.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a top plan view of a spotting board for dry cleaners made pursuant to the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a side elevational view thereof.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary, detailed, cross-sectional view taken on line III-III of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary, inverted view of the uppermost cross bar of the support.

The component parts of the spotting board hereof include an elongated board broadly designated by the numeral H], a vertical pedestal or upright support [2, and a base 14.

Base [4 is T-shaped and includes an elongated, flat cross-bar I6, an elongated stem l8 perpendicular to cross-bar I6 and overlapping the same intermediate the ends of cross-bar l6, together with a filler plate 20. Plate underlies the stem is and abuts the proximal edge of the cross-bar It presenting a fiat, lowermost surface when the portions I6, l8 and 20 of base I4 are suitably joined.

The support [2 may constitute an elongated, tubular member as illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3 threaded at both ends thereof to receive opposed flanges 22 and 24. Flange 24 is joined directly withthe-stemia-of base I4-directlyabove the cross member I 6 by means of-screws, bolts or the like 26. An elongated cross-head 28 rests upon the flange member 22 directly above the cross member IS in parallelismtherewith' and is joined with the flange member 22 by screws or other fastoning elements 30. v

The elongated board I G is horiiiontally disposes directly above*thestem' l8 and extends in the same direction as the latter'irom the pedestal [2. Boardjfiis split-longitudinally to present a pair of identical sections "32 and-3'4; eachh aving an innermost dge as] that is straight throughout substantially the entire length thereof. Sections 32, and 34 are joined directly with the cross-head 28 'for pivotal movement by means of bolt and nutasseinblies tiii'andfli respectively; There is additionally provideda bolt42 and awing nut 44 for each section 32 and 34 respectivelythat passes downwardly therethrough-in spaced relationship to the corresponding pivotal bolts 38'or 4|] inthe manner shown by Fig. 3 10f the drawing. Bolts t also pass through afcorresponding elongated, arcuate slot- 46 formed in the cross -head 28. That end of the edges 36 of sections32 and 34 next adjacent the cross-head 28, are cut-away as at 48 presenting a V-shaped notch as shown in Fig. 1 when the edges 36 of sections 32 and 34 are in abutting interengagement. When the edges 36 are separated however, with the sections 32 and 34 swinging on their corresponding axes 33 and 40, the cut-away edges 48 are brought into abutment in the manner illustrated by dotted lines in Fig. 1 of the drawing.

While the outermost longitudinal edges of the board If! are straight through substantially the entire length thereof, the same are formed in a slit taper 50 adjacent that end of the board It opposite to cross-head 28, which tapered portions 50 converge as the outermost free ends of the sections 32 and 34 are approached. Such tapered edges 50 merge into a rounded end 52 for each section 32 and 34 respectively that in turn merges with the straight innermost longitudinal edges 36.

The board It] may either be used in the manner illustrated by full lines in Fig. 1 of the drawing, with the sections 32 and 34 together and with the edges 36 in abutment, or with the sections 32 and 34 separated to any distance desired within the limits defined by the cut-away portions 48.

One example of use is in the spotting of trousers or other garments having tubular portions such as coats, blouses and the like. When such fabric materials are to be spotted, the garment is placed over the sections 32 and 34 extending into the legs of the pants or the sleeves of the coat as the case may be. As long as the wing nuts 44 are loosened, the sections 32 and 34 are freely swingable with respect to each other and if desired, when the trousers are threaded thereon, sections 32 and 34 can be spread to hold the material in a convenient condition to be worked. The wing nuts 44 may be tightened to hold the sections of board 10 against swinging movement. The most practical way of setting nuts 44 is to tighten one and allow the other to remain loose. Alternately, relatively fiat garments can be placed upon the board I0 when the same is in the condition 7 shown in full lines of Fig. 1 for spotting of the fabric or otherwise treating the same such as in pressing and cleaning operations.

Another feature that pertains to ability of the straight edges 36 and their'abutting engagement, is that the garments threaded upon the sections 32 and 34 may be clamped in place with portions thereof disposed between edges 36 andwith the wing'nuts 44 clamped in place. Free swinging movement of the sections 32 and 34 is presented while maintaining the desired feature of abutment between edges 36 because of the cut-away portions 48. The tapered edges 50, together with the rounded ends 52 facilitate the threading of the garments upon sections 32 and 34. If only one leg of a pair of trousers for instance, is to be spotted, the entire garment may nevertheless be positioned upon the sections 32 and 34, thereby holding all of the material in a suspended condition off of the floor and eliminat ing the necessity of underlying structure as a support. 7

The entire assembly is easy to use, inexpensive to manufacture and adaptable to save considerable time in the initial and/or final spotting operations or other tasks that must be hand-performed in dry cleaning processes. By virtue of the position of pedestal l2 and the arrangement of base 14, the device is accurately balanced and there are no parts adjacent the board If] that would tend to interfere with the use of sections 32 and 34.

the desirthe opposite end of the panel, presenting a pair of side-by-side sections, the sections each being Many advantages other than those above set forth will emanate from use of the spotting board hereof and it is therefore, desired to be limited only by the spirit of this invention as defined by the scope of the appended claim.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

A spotting board comprising a standard; an elongated, flat, horizontal cross-head fixed to said standard, said cross-head having an arcuate slot formed therein adjacent each end thereof respectively; an elongated, horizontal panel -on said cross-head having a V-shaped notch formed in one end thereof, said panel being longitudinally split from the apex of said notch to REFERENCES CITED r The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

' UNITED STATES PATENTS Number mName, Date 751,674 McKenzie Feb. 9, 1904 1,006,027 'IIOth Oct. 17,1911 2,193,804 Dahlberg Mar. 18, 1940 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 101,629 Germany'mQQ Feb. 8, 1899 

